In April 1881, Emma Eastment, aged 16, was a dairymaid at Landsdown Farm. Her sister Mary was a dairymaid there too.

Birth

Emma was born at Hardington in 1864, the third child of Reuben and Jane Eastment. Her father was a farm labourer.

Mother’s death

Emma’s mother, Jane, died in 1882, aged 54. Her father, Reuben, never remarried.

Dairymaid

In April 1881, Emma, aged 16, was a dairymaid at Landsdown Farm employed by John Griffin. Her older sister, Mary, was a dairymaid there too.

Life with father

Emma lived in her father’s four-room home at Hardington Marsh most of her life.

Illegitimate children

Emma had three children as a single woman: George in 1884, Albert in 1899, and Mabel Jane in 1900.

1911, a year of change

1911 was a year of profound change for Emma.

The year began as usual. The 1911 census shows Emma and her three children still living with her father, although her son, George, was recorded as the household head.

However, Emma’s father was nearly eighty, and his earning power was diminished or non-existent. Consequently, in March 1911, Emma advertised for laundry work, adding “all done at home.”[1]

The trigger for change occurred the following month. On 25 April 1911, Emma’s neighbour, Elizabeth Marsh, collapsed and died in the Butcher’s Arms, Yeovil, leaving ten children in the sole care of her husband, Edward Marsh.[2] Within five months, he and Emma were married.

Their marriage was based on mutual support. He provided financial security, and she helped look after his children.

Emma’s son, George, married Bessie Louisa Partridge shortly afterwards.

Father’s death

Emma’s father, Reuben, died in 1912, aged 80.

Death

Emma’s marriage to Edward Marsh did not last long.  She died either in 1913 or 1917.

Edward died in 1932.

Children

Emma’s sons, George and Albert, fought in the First World War. Albert was killed in Belgium in 1918, but George returned home to his wife and daughter. He lived in North Lane for many years and died in 1959, aged 74.

Emma’s daughter, Mabel Jane, became a domestic servant in Yeovil, where she met and married Sidney Thomas George Hawkins, an electrician. She died at Summerlands Hospital on 9 August 1962, aged 61.

References

[1] Western Gazette, 3 March 1911, p.2.

[2] Western Gazette 28 April 1911 p. 4.